Data routing method and device

ABSTRACT

A data routing method includes: receiving a route distinguisher of an MME serving UE sent by the MME; determining an information transmission manner supported by the MME; receiving_a query message sent by an MTC-IWF, where the query message carries a user equipment UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs to be used; determining according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the information transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME serving the UE supports the information transmission manner that needs to be used; and sending a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher. Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selected for information transmission, thereby improving service experience of a user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of International Application No.PCT/CN2013/081551, filed on Aug. 15, 2013, which is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present application relate to communicationstechnologies, and in particular, to a data routing signal processingmethod and device.

BACKGROUND

Application of machine type communication (MTC) refers to application,such as traffic control and management, remote meter reading, remotemonitoring, mobile payment, locating and tracing, or medical monitoringof network communication performed by one network element or betweenmultiple network elements in a case in which human participation is notrequired.

An application service platform (Machine Type Communications Server, MTCServer) sends a data packet (such as information reporting orinformation delivery with a data amount of only several bytes) with asmall data amount to user equipment (UE) by using an established serviceinteraction functional entity (Machine Type Communications-InterworkingFunction, MTC-IWF) and a mobile communications network. A specifictransmission procedure is: The MTC-IWF obtains, from the MTC Server, adata packet that needs to be sent to the UE, selects a propertransmission path for the data packet according to a size of the datapacket, and transmits the data packet to the UE by using a mobilenetwork.

However, in actual network architecture deployment, informationtransmission manners supported by networks deployed by operators are notthe same, and the MTC-IWF cannot accurately select a proper transmissionpath for a data packet, resulting in that the data packet cannot betransmitted to UE or transmission of the data packet to the UE isdelayed, thereby affecting service experience of a user.

SUMMARY

The present application provides a data routing method and device, whichare used to select a proper transmission path for data packettransmission.

According to a first aspect, a signal processing method is provided,including: receiving, by a home subscriber server HSS, a routedistinguisher of a mobile management entity MME serving user equipmentUE sent by the MME;

determining, by the HSS according to the route distinguisher of the MME,an information transmission manner supported by the MME, where the routedistinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence with the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME;

receiving, by the HSS, a query message sent by a service interactionfunctional entity MTC-IWF, where the query message carries a userequipment UE identifier and an information transmission manner thatneeds to be used; and determining, by the HSS according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier,and the information transmission manner that needs to be used, that theMME serving the UE supports the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used; and

sending, by the HSS, a route distinguisher of the MME that correspondsto the information transmission manner that needs to be used to theMTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF performs routing according to the routedistinguisher.

With reference to the first aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, the route distinguisher sent by the MME serving the userequipment UE and received by the HSS includes: all route distinguishersof the MME; or a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to aninformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE.

With reference to the first aspect, in a second possible implementationmanner, the determining, by the HSS according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be usedincludes: determining, by the HSS according to the UE identifier, theMME serving the UE; and querying, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, to determine that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

According to a second aspect, a data routing method is provided,including: receiving, by a home subscriber server HSS, a routedistinguisher of a mobile management entity MME serving user equipmentUE and an information transmission manner supported by the MME that aresent by the MME; receiving, by the HSS, a query message sent by aservice interaction functional entity MTC-IWF, where the query messagecarries a user equipment UE identifier and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used; determining, by the HSS according to theinformation transmission manner, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME serving the userequipment UE supports the information transmission manner that needs tobe used; and sending, by the HSS, the route distinguisher of the MME tothe MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to the routedistinguisher, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.

With reference to the second aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, information about the information transmission manner sent bythe MME and received by the HSS includes: information about aninformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE.

With reference to the second aspect, in a second possible implementationmanner, the determining, by the HSS according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be usedincludes: determining, by the HSS according to the UE identifier, theMME serving the UE; and querying, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, to determine that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

According to a third aspect, a data routing method is provided,including: receiving, by a service interaction functional entityMTC-IWF, a user equipment UE identifier, a data packet that needs to betransmitted, and an information transmission manner that needs to beused that are sent by an application service platform; sending, by theMTC-IWF, a query message to a home subscriber server HSS, where thequery message carries the UE identifier and the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used, so that the HSS determines, according tothe UE identifier and the information transmission manner that needs tobe used, that an MME serving user equipment UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; receiving, by the MTC-IWF, aroute distinguisher of the MME sent by the HSS; and routing, by theMTC-IWF, the data packet according to the route distinguisher.

With reference to the third aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, the receiving, by the MTC-IWF, a route distinguisher of the MMEsent by the HSS includes: receiving, by the MTC-IWF, a routedistinguisher that corresponds to an information transmission mannersupported by both the MME and the UE and that is sent by the HSS.

According to a fourth aspect, a data routing method is provided,including: receiving, by a mobile management entity MME, a request forregistering with the MME sent by user equipment; and sending, by theMME, a route distinguisher of the MME to a home subscriber server HSS,where the route distinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence with aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME, so that the HSSdetermines, according to the route distinguisher, the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, determines, according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, and a UEidentifier and an information transmission manner that needs to be usedthat are sent by the MTC-IWF, that the MME supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, and sends a routedistinguisher that corresponds to the information transmission mannerthat needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF performsrouting according to the route distinguisher.

With reference to the fourth aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, the receiving, by an MME, a request for registering with the MMEsent by user equipment includes: receiving, by the MME, a request, forregistering with the MME, that carries capability information of theuser equipment and that is sent by the user equipment; determining, bythe MME, a route distinguisher that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that can be supported by the MME includes:determining, by the MME, a route distinguisher that corresponds to aninformation transmission manner that can be supported by both the MMEand the UE; and the sending, by the MME, a route distinguisher to thehome subscriber server HSS includes: sending, by the MME to the HSS, theroute distinguisher that corresponds to the information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

With reference to the first possible implementation manner of the fourthaspect, in a second possible implementation manner, the receiving, by anMME, a request for registering with the MME sent by user equipmentincludes: receiving, by the MME, a non-access stratum (NAS) message sentby the user equipment; or receiving, by the MME, a location updaterequest message sent by the user equipment; or receiving, by the MME, aswitching request message sent by the user equipment.

According to a fifth aspect, a data routing method is provided,including: receiving, by a mobile management entity MME, a request forregistering with the MME sent by user equipment; and sending, by theMME, a route distinguisher supported by the MME and an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME to a home subscriber serverHSS, so that the HSS determines, according to the informationtransmission manner, and a UE identifier and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used that are sent by a service interactionfunctional entity MTC-IWF, that the MME supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, and sends the routedistinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes,according to the route distinguisher, a data packet that needs to betransmitted.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in a first possibly implementedmanner, receiving, by the MME, an NAS message sent by the user equipmentincludes: receiving, by the MME, an NAS message that carries capabilityinformation of the user equipment and that is sent by the userequipment; determining, by the MME, a route distinguisher thatcorresponds to the information transmission manner that can be supportedby the MME includes: determining, by the MME, a route distinguisher thatcorresponds to an information transmission manner that can be supportedby both the MME and the UE; and the sending, by the MME, a routedistinguisher to the home subscriber server HSS includes: sending, bythe MME to the HSS, the route distinguisher that corresponds to theinformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE.

According to a sixth aspect, a data routing apparatus is provided,including: a receiving module, configured to receive a routedistinguisher of a mobile management entity MME serving user equipmentUE sent by the MME, where the route distinguisher is in a one-to-onecorrespondence with an information transmission manner supported by theMME; a first determining module, configured to determine, according tothe route distinguisher of the MME received by the receiving module, aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME, where the routedistinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence with the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, where the receiving module isconfigured to receive a query message sent by a service interactionfunctional entity MTC-IWF, where the query message carries a userequipment UE identifier and an information transmission manner thatneeds to be used; a second determining module, configured to determine,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MMEand determined by the first determining module, and the UE identifierand the information transmission manner that needs to be used that arereceived by the receiving module, that the MME serving the UE supportsthe information transmission manner that needs to be used; and a sendingmodule, configured to send a route distinguisher of the MME that isreceived by the receiving module and that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in a first possibly implementedmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receive aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE and sent by the MME.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in a second possible implementationmanner, the second determining module is specifically configured to:

determine, according to the UE identifier received by the receivingmodule, the MME serving the UE, and query, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME and determined by the first determiningmodule, to determine that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used.

According to a seventh aspect, a data routing apparatus is provided,including: a receiving module, configured to receive a routedistinguisher of a mobile management entity MME serving user equipmentUE and an information transmission manner supported by the MME that aresent by the MME, where the receiving module is configured to receive aquery message sent by a service interaction functional entity MTC-IWF,where the query message carries a user equipment UE identifier and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used; a determiningmodule, configured to determine, according to the informationtransmission manner, the UE identifier, and the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used that are received by the receiving module,that the MME serving the user equipment UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; and a sending module,configured to send the route distinguisher received by the receivingmodule to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to theroute distinguisher, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receiveinformation about an information transmission manner supported by boththe MME and the UE and sent by the MME.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in a second possibleimplementation manner, the determining module is specifically configuredto determine, according to the UE identifier received by the receivingmodule, the MME serving the UE, and query, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used and that is received by thereceiving module, the information transmission manner supported by theMME, to determine that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used.

According to an eighth aspect, a data routing apparatus is provided,including: a receiving module, configured to receive a user equipment UEidentifier, a data packet that needs to be transmitted, and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used that are sent byan application service platform; a sending module, configured to send aquery message to a home subscriber server HSS, where the query messagecarries the UE identifier and the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used that are received by the receiving module, so that theHSS determines, according to the UE identifier and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that an MME serving userequipment UE supports the information transmission manner that needs tobe used; and a receiving module, configured to receive a routedistinguisher of the MME sent by the HSS; and a processing module,configured to route the data packet according to the route distinguisherreceived by the receiving module.

With reference to the eighth aspect, in a first possibly implementedmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receive aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE and that is sent by the HSS.

According to a ninth aspect, a data routing apparatus is provided,including: a receiving module, configured to receive a request forregistering with an MME sent by user equipment; and a sending module,configured to send a route distinguisher of the MME to a home subscriberserver HSS, where the route distinguisher is in a one-to-onecorrespondence with an information transmission manner supported by theMME, so that the HSS determines, according to the route distinguisher,the information transmission manner supported by the MME, determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,and a UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are sent by the MTC-IWF, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and sends theroute distinguisher that corresponds to the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFperforms routing according to the route distinguisher.

With reference to the ninth aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receive arequest, for registering with the MME, that carries capabilityinformation of the user equipment and that is sent by the userequipment; and the sending module is specifically configured to send, tothe HSS, a route distinguisher that corresponds to an informationtransmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE.

With reference to the ninth aspect, in a second possible implementationmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receive anon-access stratum NAS message sent by user equipment; or receive alocation update request message sent by the user equipment; or receive aswitching request message sent by the user equipment.

According to a tenth aspect, a data routing apparatus is provided,including: a receiving module, configured to receive a request forregistering with an MME sent by user equipment; and a sending module,configured to send a route distinguisher supported by the MME and aninformation transmission manner that can be supported by the MME to ahome subscriber server HSS, so that the HSS determines, according to theinformation transmission manner, and a UE identifier and an informationtransmission manner that needs to be used that are sent by an MTC-IWF,that the MME supports the information transmission manner that needs tobe used, and sends the route distinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, sothat the MTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher, a datapacket that needs to be transmitted.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in a first possibly implementedmanner, the receiving module is specifically configured to receive anNAS message that carries capability information of the user equipmentand that is sent by the user equipment; and the sending module isspecifically configured to send, to the HSS, a route distinguisher thatcorresponds to an information transmission manner supported by both theMME and the UE.

An HSS receives a route distinguisher of a mobile management entity(MME) serving user equipment UE sent by the MME, the HSS determines,according to the route distinguisher of the MME, an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, where the route distinguisheris in a one-to-one correspondence with the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, and receives a query message sent by anMTC-IWF, where the query message carries a user equipment UE identifierand an information transmission manner that needs to be used, the HSSdetermines, according to the information transmission manner supportedby the MME, the UE identifier, and the information transmission mannerthat needs to be used, that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and the HSS sendsthe route distinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFroutes, according to the route distinguisher, a data packet that needsto be transmitted. Therefore, a most effective transmission path isselected for information transmission, thereby improving serviceexperience of a user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

To describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the presentapplication more clearly, the following briefly introduces theaccompanying drawings required for describing the embodiments.Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the following description showmerely some embodiments of the present application, and a person ofordinary skill in the art may still derive other drawings from theseaccompanying drawings without creative efforts.

FIG. 1 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application;

FIG. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 16 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 17 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application;

FIG. 18 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application; and

FIG. 19 is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of adata routing apparatus according to the present application.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of thepresent application clearer, the following further describes the presentapplication in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.Apparently, the described embodiments are merely some but not all of theembodiments of the present application. All other embodiments obtainedby a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of thepresent application without creative efforts shall fall within theprotection scope of the present application.

In the embodiments of the present application, a data packet that iswith a small data amount and that is transmitted in an LTE system isused as an example. For transmission of information in a small dataformat in another mobile communications network, as long as a method ofrouting in an information transmission manner in the present applicationis used, the transmission falls within the protection scope of thepresent application.

It should be specially noted that, in the embodiments of the presentapplication, the data packet with the small data amount is described byusing reporting or delivery of information with a data amount of onlyseveral bytes as an example. However, the protection scope of thepresent application includes but is not limited to this.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a data routing methodaccording to the present application. The embodiment includes:

101: An HSS receives a route distinguisher of an MME serving UE sent bythe MME.

102: The HSS determines, according to the route distinguisher of theMME, an information transmission manner supported by the MME, where theroute distinguisher of the MME is in a one-to-one correspondence withthe information transmission manner supported by the MME.

The route distinguisher sent by the MME serving the UE and received bythe HSS includes: all route distinguishers of the MME; or a routedistinguisher of the MME that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

103: The HSS receives a query message sent by an MTC-IWF, where thequery message carries a UE identifier and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used.

104: The HSS determines, according to the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

Step 104 specifically includes: determining, by the HSS according to theUE identifier, the MME serving the UE; and querying, according to theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, to determine that the MMEserving the UE supports the information transmission manner that needsto be used.

105: The HSS sends a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds tothe information transmission manner that needs to be used to theMTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF performs routing according to the routedistinguisher of the MME.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME serving UE sent by the MME, determines,according to the route distinguisher of the MME, an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, and determines, according tothe information transmission manner supported by the MME, a received UEidentifier, and an information transmission manner that needs to beused, that the MME serving the UE supports the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used, and the HSS sends a route distinguisher ofthe MME that corresponds to the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used to an MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according tothe route distinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to betransmitted. Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selectedfor information transmission, thereby improving service experience of auser.

FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

201: An HSS receives a route distinguisher of an MME serving UE and aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME that are sent bythe MME.

The information transmission manner sent by the MME and received by theHSS may be an information transmission manner supported by the MME, ormay be information about an information transmission manner supported byboth the MME and the UE.

202: The HSS receives a query message sent by an MTC-IWF, where thequery message carries a UE identifier and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used.

203: The HSS determines, according to the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used.

Step 203 specifically includes: determining, by the HSS according to theUE identifier, the MME serving the UE; and querying, according to theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, to determine that the MMEserving the UE supports the information transmission manner that needsto be used.

204: The HSS sends the route distinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, sothat the MTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher, a datapacket that needs to be transmitted.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME serving UE and an information transmissionmanner supported by the MME that are sent by the MME, and determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,the received UE identifier, and the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used, that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, and the HSS sends a routedistinguisher of the MME that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to an MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher of the MME, a datapacket that needs to be transmitted. Therefore, a most effectivetransmission path is selected for information transmission; and becausea same route distinguisher is used, a success rate of sending a shortmessage service message is further increased, thereby improving serviceexperience of a user.

FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

301: An MTC-IWF receives a UE identifier, a data packet that needs to betransmitted, and an information transmission manner that needs to beused that are sent by an MTC Server.

302: The MTC-IWF sends a query message to an HSS, where the querymessage carries the UE identifier and the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used, so that the HSS determines, according toan information transmission manner supported by an MME serving UE, theUE identifier, and the information transmission manner that needs to beused, that the MME supports the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used.

303: The MTC-IWF receives a route distinguisher of the MME thatcorresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to be usedand that is sent by the HSS.

Optionally, step 303 may further be: the MTC-IWF may further receive aroute distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to an informationtransmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE and needing tobe used and that is sent by the HSS.

304: The MTC-IWF routes the data packet according to the routedistinguisher of the MME.

In this embodiment of the present application, an MTC-IWF acquires aroute distinguisher of an MME, and routes, according to the routedistinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to be transmitted, sothat the MTC-IWF accurately selects a proper transmission path for thedata packet, to enable the data packet to arrive at UE in time, therebyimproving service experience of a user.

FIG. 4 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

401: An MME receives a request for registering with the MME sent by UE.

Optionally, step 401 may further be: receiving, by the MME, a request,for registering with the MME, that carries capability information of theUE and that is sent by the UE.

The receiving, by an MME, a request for registering with the MME sent byUE includes: receiving, by the MME, a non-access stratum NAS messagesent by the UE; or receiving, by the MME, a location update requestmessage sent by the UE; or receiving, by the MME, a switching requestmessage sent by the UE.

402: The MME sends a route distinguisher of the MME to an HSS, where theroute distinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence with aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME, so that the HSSdetermines, according to the route distinguisher of the MME, theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,and a UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are sent by the MTC-IWF, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and sends a routedistinguisher that corresponds to the information transmission mannerthat needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF performsrouting according to the route distinguisher.

Optionally, step 402 may further be: sending, by the MME to the HSS, aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

In this embodiment of the present application, the MME determines aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner that can be supported by the MME, and the MME sends the routedistinguisher of the MME to an HSS, where the route distinguisher of theMME is in a one-to-one correspondence with the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according tothe route distinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to betransmitted. Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selectedfor information transmission, thereby improving service experience of auser.

FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

501: An MME receives a request for registering with the MME sent by UE.

502: The MME sends a route distinguisher supported by the MME and aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME to a homesubscriber server HSS, so that the HSS determines, according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, and a UEidentifier and an information transmission manner that needs to be usedthat are sent by an MTC-IWF, that the MME supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, and sends the routedistinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes,according to the route distinguisher, a data packet that needs to betransmitted.

Optionally, step 501 may further be: receiving, by the MME, an NASmessage that carries capability information of the UE and that is sentby the UE; step 502 may further be: determining, by the MME, a routedistinguisher that corresponds to an information transmission mannerthat can be supported by both the MME and the UE; and step 503 mayfurther be: sending, by the MME to the HSS, the route distinguisher thatcorresponds to the information transmission manner supported by both theMME and the UE.

In this embodiment of the present application, a route distinguisher ofthe MME is sent to an HSS by using an information transmission mannerthat can be supported by the MME and the route distinguisher of the MME,so that an MTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher of theMME, a data packet that needs to be transmitted. Therefore, the MTC-IWFaccurately selects a proper transmission path for the data packet, sothat the data packet can arrive at UE in time; and because a same routedistinguisher is used, a distinguisher resource of a network node isreduced, thereby improving service experience of a user.

FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

601: UE sends a non-access stratum (NAS) message to an MME serving theUE, and registers with the MME.

In addition to registering with the MME by means of a network attachmentprocedure, the UE may also register with the MME by means of a locationupdate procedure or a switching procedure. The foregoing descriptionsare all examples provided in the present application, and fall withinthe protection scope of the present application as long as the UE canregister with the MME.

602: The MME serving the UE determines a route distinguisher thatcorresponds to an information transmission manner that can be supportedby the MME.

The MME serving the UE sets different route distinguishers thatcorrespond to information transmission manners supported by the MME, asshown in Table 1:

TABLE 1 Information transmission manner supported by an MME Routedistinguisher A manner in which transmission of a short First-type MMEID message service message is supported A manner in which a serviceinteraction Second-type MME ID functional entity directly performscontrol plane data transmission from the MME to the UE A manner in whichtransmission of a short First-type MME ID and message service message issupported, second-type MME ID and a manner in which a serviceinteraction functional entity directly performs control plane datatransmission from the MME to the UE

Table 1 provides examples of the information transmission mannerssupported by the MME and the route distinguishers, only forunderstanding of the present application. The present applicationincludes but is not limited to the examples provided in Table 1.

603: The MME serving the UE sends a location update request message toan HSS, where the request message carries the route distinguisher of theMME, and the route distinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence withthe information transmission manner supported by the MME.

The route distinguisher of the MME may be: all route distinguishers ofthe MME, or a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to aninformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE.

604: The HSS saves the route distinguisher of the MME to a context ofthe UE.

For example, if the MME determines that the MME supports thetransmission of a short message service message, the HSS saves, to thecontext of the UE, the first-type MME ID received in step 603.

605: The HSS determines, according to the route distinguisher of theMME, the information transmission manner supported by the MME, where theroute distinguisher of the MME is in a one-to-one correspondence withthe information transmission manner supported by the MME.

For example, a correspondence between the route distinguisher of the MMEand the information transmission manner supported by the MME may bepre-stored on the HSS, and therefore, the HSS determines, according tothe route distinguisher of the MME, the information transmission mannersupported by the MME.

606: An MTC server sends a transmission message, for example, a datasending request message, to an MTC-IWF, where the transmission messagecarries a UE identifier, a data packet that needs to be transmitted, andan information transmission manner that needs to be used.

607: The MTC-IWF sends a query message to the HSS, where the querymessage carries the UE identifier and the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used.

608: The HSS determines, according to the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

For example, the HSS determines, according to the UE identifier, the MMEserving the UE; and the HSS queries, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, to determine that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

609: The HSS sends, to the MTC-IWF, a route distinguisher of the MMEthat corresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to beused.

For example, in step 606 to step 609, the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used and that is acquired by the MTC-IWF fromthe MTC Server is an information transmission manner in which theMTC-IWF performs control plane data transmission from the MME servingthe UE to the UE; and then the MTC-IWF sends the UE identifier and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used to the HSS, andthe HSS determines, according to the information transmission mannersupported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, whether the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used. If the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used, theHSS sends the second-type MME ID to the MTC-IWF; optionally, if the MMEdoes not support the information transmission manner that needs to beused, a message sent by the HSS to the MTC-IWF does not carry a routedistinguisher. This manner is only an example provided in the presentapplication, and the present application includes but is not limited tothis.

610: The MTC-IWF routes the data packet according to the routedistinguisher of the MME obtained through query.

For example, if the route distinguisher is the second-type MME ID, theMTC-IWF adds the data packet to a control message between the MTC-IWFand the MME and sends the control message to the MME serving the UE, andthe MME serving the UE sends the data packet to the UE by using an NASmessage; or if the route distinguisher is the first-type MME ID, theMTC-IWF sends the data packet and the first-type MME ID to a shortmessage service center, and the short message service center sends thedata packet and the first-type MME ID to the UE by using the MME.

Optionally, if the MME with which the UE currently registers does notsupport the information transmission manner that needs to be used, theMTC-IWF cannot obtain routing information from the HSS, the MTC-IWFsends a data sending request failure message to the MTC-server, and theMTC Server may decide, according to a policy of the MTC Server, whetherto discard the data packet or select another information transmissionmanner to perform retransmission.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME serving UE sent by the MME, determines,according to the route distinguisher, an information transmission mannersupported by the MME, and determines, according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, a received UE identifier, andan information transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used, andthe HSS sends a route distinguisher that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to an MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher, a data packet thatneeds to be transmitted. Therefore, a most effective transmission pathis selected for information transmission, thereby improving serviceexperience of a user.

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment is similarto the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, and differences lie in:

701: UE sends an NAS message to an MME serving the UE, and registerswith the MME, where the NAS message carries capability information ofthe UE.

The capability information of the UE may include a manner in which theUE supports transmission of a short message service message, or a mannerin which the UE supports transmission, by using an NAS message, of asmall data packet from the MME to the UE.

702: The MME serving the UE determines a route distinguisher thatcorresponds to an information transmission manner that can be supportedby both the MME and the UE.

The MME serving the UE and the UE set different route distinguishersthat correspond to information transmission manners supported by the MMEand the UE, as shown in Table 2:

TABLE 2 Information transmission manner Information transmission mannerRoute supported by UE supported by an MME distinguisher A manner inwhich transmission of a short A manner in which transmission of a shortFirst-type MME ID message service message is supported message servicemessage is supported A manner in which a service interaction A manner inwhich a service interaction Second-type MME functional entity directlyperforms control functional entity directly performs control ID planedata transmission from the MME to the plane data transmission from theMME to UE the UE A manner in which transmission of a short A manner inwhich transmission of a short First-type MME ID message service messageis supported, and a message service message is supported, and andsecond-type manner in which a service interaction a manner in which aservice interaction MME ID functional entity directly performs controlfunctional entity directly performs control plane data transmission fromthe MME to the plane data transmission from the MME to UE the UE

Table 2 provides examples of the information transmission mannerssupported by the MME and the route distinguishers, only forunderstanding of the present application. The present applicationincludes but is not limited to the examples provided in Table 2.

Because capabilities of terminals of different versions are different, asuccess rate of sending a short message service message is furtherincreased in a manner in which the route distinguisher that correspondsto the information transmission manner that can be supported by both theUE and the MME serving the UE is used.

703: The MME serving the UE sends a location update request message toan HSS, where the request message carries the route distinguisher thatis determined by the MME serving the UE and that corresponds to theinformation transmission manner that can be supported by both the MMEand the UE.

704: The HSS saves, to a context of the UE, the route distinguisher thatis determined by the MME serving the UE and the UE and that correspondsto the information transmission manner that can be supported by the MMEand the UE.

For example, if the MME serving the UE determines that both the MME andthe UE support a manner in which a short message service message istransmitted, the HSS saves, to the context of the UE, a correspondingfirst-type MME ID that supports the manner in which a short messageservice message is transmitted.

705: The HSS determines, according to the route distinguisher, aninformation transmission manner supported by the MME serving the UE.

706: The MTC Server sends a transmission message, for example, a datasending request message, to the MTC-IWF, where the transmission messagecarries a UE identifier, a data packet that needs to be transmitted, andan information transmission manner that needs to be used.

707: The MTC-IWF sends query routing information to the HSS, where theinformation carries the UE identifier and the transmission manner thatneeds to be used.

708: The HSS determines, according to the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME serving the UE, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.

709: The HSS sends, to the MTC-IWF, a route distinguisher of the MMEthat corresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to beused.

For example, in step 706 to step 709, the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used and that is acquired by the MTC-IWF fromthe MTC Server is an information transmission manner in which theMTC-IWF directly performs control plane data transmission from the MMEserving the UE to the UE; and then the MTC-IWF sends the UE identifierand the information transmission manner that needs to be used to theHSS, and the HSS determines, according to the UE identifier, theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, whether the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used. Ifthe MME supports the information transmission manner that needs to beused, the HSS sends the second-type MME ID to the MTC-IWF.

710: The MTC-IWF routes the data packet according to the routedistinguisher of the MME obtained through query.

For example, if the routing information is the second-type MME ID, theMTC-IWF adds the data packet to a control message between the MTC-IWFand the MME and sends the control message to the MME serving the UE, andthe MME serving the UE sends the data packet to the UE by using an NASmessage; or if the MME ID is the first-type MME ID, the MTC-IWF sendsthe data packet and the first-type MME ID to a short message servicecenter, and the short message service center sends the data packet andthe first-type MME ID to the UE by using the MME.

Optionally, if the MME with which the UE currently registers does notsupport the transmission manner that needs to be used, the MTC-IWFcannot obtain routing information from the HSS, the MTC-IWF sends a datasending request failure message to the MTC-server, and the MTC-servermay decide, according to a policy of the MTC-server, whether to discardthe data packet or select another transmission manner to performretransmission.

The UE identifier mentioned above may be at least one of or acombination of the following: an international mobile subscriberidentity (IMSI), a mobile station international ISDN number (MSISDN),and an external service identifier. The present application includes butis not limited to this.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME sent by the MME, determines, according to theroute distinguisher of the MME, a transmission manner supported by theMME, and determines, according to the transmission manner supported bythe MME, a received UE identifier, and a transmission manner that needsto be used, that the MME supports the transmission manner that needs tobe used, and the HSS sends a route distinguisher of the MME thatcorresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to be usedto an MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to the routedistinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selected forinformation transmission, thereby improving service experience of auser.

FIG. 8 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. Step 801 and step 805 tostep 809 in the embodiment are similar to step 601 and step 605 to step609 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, and differences lie in:

802: The MME serving the UE determines an information transmissionmanner that can be supported by the MME.

As shown in Table 3, different information transmission mannerssupported by the MME correspond to a same route distinguisher:

TABLE 3 Information transmission Route manner supported by an MMEdistinguisher A manner in which transmission of a short message MME IDservice message is supported A manner in which a service interactionfunctional MME ID entity directly performs control plane datatransmission from the MME to the UE A manner in which transmission of ashort message MME ID service message is supported, and a manner in whicha service interaction functional entity directly performs control planedata transmission from the MME to the UE

Table 3 provides examples of the information transmission mannerssupported by the UE, the information transmission manners supported bythe MME, and the route distinguisher, only for understanding of thepresent application. The present application includes but is not limitedto the examples provided in Table 3.

803: The MME sends a location update request message to an HSS, wherethe request message carries the information transmission manner of theMME and a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to theinformation transmission manner.

For example, the route distinguisher of the MME is the MME ID in theforegoing table.

804: The HSS saves, to a context of the UE, the route distinguishercorresponding to the information transmission manner that is determinedand supported by the MME.

For example, if the MME determines that the MME supports a manner inwhich a short message service message is transmitted, the HSS registersthe manner supporting the short message service message and the MME IDin the context of the UE saved by the HSS.

In this embodiment of the present application, an MTC-IWF acquires aroute distinguisher of an MME that currently serves the user andsupports the information transmission manner, and the MTC-IWF routes,according to the route distinguisher of the MME, a data packet thatneeds to be transmitted, so that the MTC-IWF accurately selects a propertransmission path for the data packet, to enable the data packet toarrive at UE in time; and because a same route distinguisher is used, adistinguisher resource of a network node is reduced, thereby improvingservice experience of a user.

FIG. 9 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingmethod according to the present application. The embodiment is similarto the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, and differences lie in:

901: UE sends an NAS message to an MME serving the UE, and registerswith the MME, where the NAS message carries capability information ofthe UE.

The capability information of the UE may include a manner in which theUE supports information transmission of a short message service message,or a manner in which the UE supports transmission, by using an NASmessage, of a small data packet from the MME to the UE.

902: The MME determines an information transmission manner that can besupported by the MME and the UE.

The MME determines the information transmission manner supported by theMME and the UE, and the MME uses a same route distinguisher tocorrespond to different information transmission manners, as shown inTable 4:

TABLE 4 Information transmission manner Information transmission mannerRoute supported by UE supported by an MME distinguisher A manner inwhich transmission of a short A manner in which transmission of a shortMME ID message service message is supported message service message issupported A manner in which a service interaction A manner in which aservice interaction MME ID functional entity directly performs controlfunctional entity directly performs control plane data transmission fromthe MME to the plane data transmission from the MME to UE the UE Amanner in which transmission of a short A manner in which transmissionof a short MME ID message service message is supported, and a messageservice message is supported, and manner in which a service interactiona manner in which a service interaction functional entity directlyperforms control functional entity directly performs control plane datatransmission from the MME to the plane data transmission from the MME toUE the UE

Table 4 provides examples of the information transmission mannerssupported by the UE, the information transmission manners supported bythe MME, and the route distinguisher, only for understanding of thepresent application. The present application includes but is not limitedto the examples provided in Table 4.

903: The MME sends a location update request message to an HSS, wherethe request message carries the information transmission manner that isdetermined by the MME and that can be supported by both the MME and theUE, and a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to theinformation transmission manner.

904: The HSS saves, to a context of the UE, the route distinguishercorresponding to the information transmission manner that is determinedand supported by the MME and the UE.

In this embodiment of the present application, an MTC-IWF acquires aroute distinguisher of an MME that corresponds to an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the MTC-IWF routes, accordingto the route distinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to betransmitted, so that the MTC-IWF accurately selects a propertransmission path for the data packet, and performs routing by using aroute distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to an informationtransmission manner that can be supported by both the UE and the MME, sothat a success rate of sending a short message service message isfurther increased, thereby improving service experience of a user.

FIG. 10 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiving module 1001, configured to receive a route distinguisher ofan MME serving UE sent by the MME, where the route distinguisher is in aone-to-one correspondence with an information transmission mannersupported by the MME;

a first determining module 1002, configured to determine, according tothe route distinguisher received by the receiving module, an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, where

the receiving module is configured to receive a query message sent by anMTC-IWF, where the query message carries a UE identifier and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used; and

a second determining module 1003, configured to determine, according tothe information transmission manner supported by the MME and determinedby the first determining module, and the UE identifier and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used that are receivedby the receiving module, that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used; and

a sending module 1004, configured to send the route distinguisher of theMME received by the receiving module to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFperforms routing according to the route distinguisher.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME serving UE sent by the MME, determines,according to the route distinguisher, an information transmission mannersupported by the MME, and determines, according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the received UE identifier,and the information transmission manner that needs to be used, that theMME supports the information transmission manner that needs to be used,and the HSS sends a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds tothe information transmission manner that needs to be used to an MTC-IWF,so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher of theMME, a data packet that needs to be transmitted. Therefore, a mosteffective transmission path is selected for information transmission,thereby improving service experience of a user.

The receiving module is specifically configured to receive all routedistinguishers of the MME sent by the MME; or receive a routedistinguisher of the MME that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

The second determining module is specifically configured to determine,according to the UE identifier received by the receiving module, the MMEserving the UE, and query, according to the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used, the information transmission manner thatis supported by the MME and that is determined by the first determiningmodule, to determine that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 10 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 1, FIG.3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments.

FIG. 11 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiving module 1101, configured to receive a route distinguisher ofa mobile management entity MME serving UE and an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME that are sent by the MME, where

the receiving module is configured to receive a query message sent by anMTC-IWF, where the query message carries a UE identifier and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used;

a determining module 1102, configured to determine, according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier,and the information transmission manner that needs to be used that arereceived by the receiving module, that the MME supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; and

a sending module 1103, configured to send the route distinguisher of theMME received by the receiving module to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFroutes, according to the route distinguisher of the MME, a data packetthat needs to be transmitted.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher of an MME and an information transmission manner supportedby the MME that are sent by the MME, and determines, according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, the received UEidentifier, and the information transmission manner that needs to beused, that the MME supports the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used, and the HSS sends a route distinguisher of the MMEthat corresponds to the information transmission manner that needs to beused to an MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to the routedistinguisher of the MME, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selected forinformation transmission, and a success rate of sending a short messageservice message is further increased, thereby improving serviceexperience of a user.

The receiving module is specifically configured to:

receive, by the HSS, information about an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE and sent by the MME.

The determining module is specifically configured to determine,according to the UE identifier received by the receiving module, the MMEserving the UE, and query, according to the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used and that is received by the receivingmodule, the information transmission manner supported by the MME, todetermine that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 11 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 2, FIG.3, FIG. 5, FIG. 8, and FIG. 9 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments.

FIG. 12 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiving module 1201, configured to receive a UE identifier, a datapacket that needs to be transmitted, and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used that are sent by an application serviceplatform;

a sending module 1202, configured to send a query message to a homesubscriber server HSS, where the query message carries the UE identifierand the information transmission manner that needs to be used that arereceived by the receiving module, so that the HSS determines, accordingto an information transmission manner supported by an MME, the UEidentifier, and the information transmission manner that needs to beused, that the MME supports the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used, where

the receiving module is configured to receive a route distinguisher ofthe MME sent by the HSS; and

a processing module 1203, configured to route the data packet accordingto the route distinguisher received by the receiving module.

An MTC-IWF receives a UE identifier, a data packet that needs to betransmitted, and an information transmission manner that needs to beused that are sent by an application service platform; sends a querymessage to a home subscriber server HSS, where the query message carriesthe UE identifier and the information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are received by the receiving module, so that the HSSdetermines, according to an information transmission manner supported byan MME, the UE identifier, and the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used, that the MME supports the information transmissionmanner that needs to be used; receives a route distinguisher of the MMEsent by the HSS; and routes the data packet according to the routedistinguisher. Therefore, a most effective transmission path is selectedfor information transmission, thereby improving service experience of auser.

The receiving module is specifically configured to:

receive a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to aninformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE andthat is sent by the HSS.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 12 can separatelyimplement the method shown in any of the foregoing method embodiments.For details, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments.

FIG. 13 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiving module 1301, configured to receive a request for registeringwith an MME sent by UE; and

a sending module 1302, configured to send a route distinguisher of theMME to an HSS, where the route distinguisher of the MME is in aone-to-one correspondence with an information transmission mannersupported by the MME, so that the HSS determines, according to the routedistinguisher of the MME, the information transmission manner supportedby the MME, determines, according to the information transmission mannersupported by the MME, and a UE identifier and an informationtransmission manner that needs to be used that are sent by the MTC-IWF,that the MME supports the information transmission manner that needs tobe used, and sends a route distinguisher that corresponds to theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, sothat the MTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher.

In this embodiment of the present application, an HSS receives a routedistinguisher sent by an MME, determines, according to the routedistinguisher, an information transmission manner supported by the MME,and determines, according to the information transmission mannersupported by the MME, the received UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and the HSS sendsa route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to an MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF routes, according to the route distinguisher of the MME, a datapacket that needs to be transmitted. Therefore, a most effectivetransmission path is selected for information transmission, therebyimproving service experience of a user.

The receiving module is specifically configured to receive a request,for registering with the MME, that carries capability information of theUE and that is sent by the UE.

The sending module is specifically configured to send, to the HSS, aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

The receiving module is specifically configured to receive a non-accessstratum NAS message sent by the UE; or receive a location update requestmessage sent by the UE; or receive a switching request message sent bythe UE.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 13 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 1, FIG.3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments.

FIG. 14 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiving module 1401, configured to receive a request for registeringwith an MME sent by UE; and

a sending module 1402, configured to send a route distinguishersupported by the MME and an information transmission manner supported bythe MME to a home subscriber server HSS, so that the HSS determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,and a UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are sent by an MTC-IWF, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and sends theroute distinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFroutes, according to the route distinguisher of the MME, a data packetthat needs to be transmitted.

In this embodiment of the present application, an MTC-IWF acquires aroute distinguisher of the MME, and the MTC-IWF routes, according to theroute distinguisher, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.Therefore, the MTC-IWF accurately selects a proper transmission path forthe data packet, so that the data packet can arrive at UE in time; andbecause a same route distinguisher is used, a distinguisher resource ofa network node is reduced, thereby improving service experience of auser.

The receiving module is specifically configured to receive an NASmessage that carries capability information of the UE and that is sentby the UE.

The sending module is specifically configured to send, to the HSS, aroute distinguisher that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 14 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 2, FIG.3, FIG. 5, FIG. 8, and FIG. 9 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments.

FIG. 15 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiver 1501, configured to receive a route distinguisher of an MMEserving UE sent by the MME;

a processor 1502, configured to determine, according to the routedistinguisher received by the receiver, an information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, where the route distinguisher is in aone-to-one correspondence with the information transmission mannersupported by the MME, where

the receiver is configured to receive a query message sent by anMTC-IWF, where the query message carries a UE identifier and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used; and

the processor is configured to determine, according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, and the UE identifier and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used that are receivedby the receiver, that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; and

a transmitter 1503, configured to send a route distinguisher of the MMEthat is received by the receiver and that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher.

The receiver is specifically configured to receive all routedistinguishers of the MME sent by the MME; or receive a routedistinguisher of the MME that corresponds to an information transmissionmanner supported by both the MME and the UE.

The processor is specifically configured to determine, according to theUE identifier received by the receiving module, the MME serving the UE,and query, according to the information transmission manner that needsto be used, the information transmission manner that is supported by theMME and that is determined by the first determining module, to determinethat the MME serving the UE supports the information transmission mannerthat needs to be used.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 15 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 1, FIG.3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments. For an effect achieved by the apparatus, reference may alsobe made to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

FIG. 16 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiver 1601, configured to receive a route distinguisher of an MMEserving UE and an information transmission manner supported by the MMEthat are sent by the MME, where

the receiver is configured to receive a query message sent by a serviceinteraction functional entity MTC-IWF, where the query message carries aUE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs to beused;

a processor 1602, configured to determine, according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used that are receivedby the receiver, that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; and

a transmitter 1603, configured to send the route distinguisher receivedby the receiver to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according tothe route distinguisher, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.

The receiver is specifically configured to:

receive information about an information transmission manner supportedby both the MME and the UE and sent by the MME.

The processor is specifically configured to:

determine, according to the UE identifier received by the receivingmodule, the MME serving the UE, and query, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used and that is received by thereceiving module, the information transmission manner supported by theMME, to determine that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 16 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 2, FIG.3, FIG. 5, FIG. 8, and FIG. 9 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments. For an effect achieved by the apparatus, reference may alsobe made to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

FIG. 17 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiver 1701, configured to receive a UE identifier, a data packetthat needs to be transmitted, and an information transmission mannerthat needs to be used that are sent by an application service platform;

a transmitter 1702, configured to send a query message to an HSS, wherethe query message carries the UE identifier and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used that are received by thereceiver, so that the HSS determines, according to an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEserving UE supports the information transmission manner that needs to beused, where

the receiver is configured to receive a route distinguisher of the MMEsent by the HSS; and

a processor 1703, configured to route the data packet according to theroute distinguisher received by the receiver.

The receiver is specifically configured to:

receive a route distinguisher that corresponds to an informationtransmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE and that issent by the HSS.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 17 can separatelyimplement the method shown in any of the foregoing method embodiments.For details, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments. For an effect achieved by the apparatus, reference may alsobe made to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

FIG. 18 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiver 1801, configured to receive a request for registering with anMME sent by UE; and

a transmitter 1802, configured to send a route distinguisher of the MMEto an HSS, where the route distinguisher is in a one-to-onecorrespondence with an information transmission manner supported by theMME, so that the HSS determines, according to the route distinguisher,the information transmission manner supported by the MME, determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,and a UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are sent by the MTC-IWF, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and sends a routedistinguisher of the MME that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher.

The receiver is specifically configured to receive a request, forregistering with the MME, that carries capability information of the UEand that is sent by the UE.

The transmitter is specifically configured to send, to the HSS, a routedistinguisher that corresponds to an information transmission mannersupported by both the MME and the UE.

The receiver is specifically configured to receive a non-access stratumNAS message sent by the UE; or receive a location update request messagesent by the UE; or receive a switching request message sent by the UE.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 18 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 1, FIG.3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments. For an effect achieved by the apparatus, reference may alsobe made to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

FIG. 19 is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of a data routingapparatus according to the present application. The embodiment includes:

a receiver 1901, configured to receive a request for registering with anMME sent by UE; and

a transmitter 1902, configured to send a route distinguisher supportedby the MME and an information transmission manner that can be supportedby the MME to a home subscriber server HSS, so that the HSS determines,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MME,and a UE identifier and an information transmission manner that needs tobe used that are sent by an MTC-IWF, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, and sends theroute distinguisher of the MME to the MTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWFroutes, according to the route distinguisher, a data packet that needsto be transmitted.

The receiver is specifically configured to receive an NAS message thatcarries capability information of the UE and that is sent by the UE.

The transmitter is specifically configured to send, to the HSS, a routedistinguisher that corresponds to an information transmission mannersupported by both the MME and the UE.

It should be noted that, the apparatus shown in FIG. 19 can separatelyimplement the methods in the embodiments that are shown in FIG. 2, FIG.3, FIG. 5, FIG. 8, and FIG. 9 in the foregoing method embodiments. Fordetails, reference may be made to descriptions in the foregoingembodiments. For an effect achieved by the apparatus, reference may alsobe made to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

It may be clearly understood by a person skilled in the art that, forthe purpose of convenient and brief description, division of theforegoing functional modules is taken as an example for illustration. Inactual application, the foregoing functions can be allocated todifferent functional modules and implemented according to a requirement,that is, an inner structure of an apparatus is divided into differentfunctional modules to implement all or some of the functions describedabove. For a detailed working process of the foregoing system,apparatus, and unit, refer to a corresponding process in the foregoingmethod embodiments, and details are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, itshould be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus, and methodmay be implemented in other manners. For example, the describedapparatus embodiment is merely exemplary. For example, the module orunit division is merely logical function division and may be otherdivision in actual implementation. For example, a plurality of units orcomponents may be combined or integrated into another system, or somefeatures may be ignored or not performed. In addition, the displayed ordiscussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communicationconnections may be implemented by using some interfaces. The indirectcouplings or communication connections between the apparatuses or unitsmay be implemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physicallyseparate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units,may be located in one position, or may be distributed on a plurality ofnetwork units. Some or all of the units may be selected according toactual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of theembodiments.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the presentapplication may be integrated into one processing unit, or each of theunits may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integratedinto one unit. The integrated unit may be implemented in a form ofhardware, or may be implemented in a form of a software functional unit.

When the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a softwarefunctional unit and sold or used as an independent product, theintegrated unit may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.Based on such an understanding, the technical solutions of the presentapplication essentially, or the part contributing to the prior art, orall or some of the technical solutions may be implemented in the form ofa software product. The computer software product is stored in a storagemedium and includes several instructions for instructing a computerdevice (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device)or a processor to perform all or some of the steps of the methodsdescribed in the embodiments of the present application. The foregoingstorage medium includes: any medium that can store program code, such asa USB flash drive, a removable hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), arandom access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disc.

The foregoing embodiments are merely intended for describing thetechnical solutions of the present application, but not for limiting thepresent application. Although the present application is described indetail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, persons of ordinaryskill in the art should understand that they may still makemodifications to the technical solutions described in the foregoingembodiments or make equivalent replacements to some technical featuresthereof, without departing from the spirit and scope of the technicalsolutions of the embodiments of the present application.

What is claimed is:
 1. A data routing method, comprising: receiving, bya home subscriber server (HSS), a route distinguisher of a mobilemanagement entity (MME) serving user equipment (UE) sent by the MME;determining, by the HSS according to the route distinguisher of the MME,an information transmission manner supported by the MME, wherein theroute distinguisher of the MME is in a one-to-one correspondence withthe information transmission manner supported by the MME; receiving, bythe HSS, a query message sent by a service interaction functional entity(MTC-IWF), wherein the query message carries a UE identifier and aninformation transmission manner that needs to be used; determining, bythe HSS according to the information transmission manner supported bythe MME, the UE identifier, and the information transmission manner thatneeds to be used, that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used; and sending, by the HSS, aroute distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher of theMME.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the route distinguisherof the MME serving the UE sent by the MME and received by the HSScomprises: all route distinguishers of the MME; or a route distinguisherof the MME that corresponds to an information transmission mannersupported by both the MME and the UE.
 3. The method according to claim1, wherein the determining, by the HSS according to the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier, and theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used, that the MMEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be usedcomprises: determining, by the HSS according to the UE identifier, theMME serving the UE; and querying, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME, to determine that the MME serving the UEsupports the information transmission manner that needs to be used.
 4. Adata routing method, comprising: receiving, by a home subscriber server(HSS), a route distinguisher of a mobile management entity (MME) servinguser equipment (UE) and an information transmission manner supported bythe MME that are sent by the MME; receiving, by the HSS, a query messagesent by a service interaction functional entity (MTC-IWF), wherein thequery message carries a UE identifier and an information transmissionmanner that needs to be used; determining, by the HSS according to theinformation transmission manner supported by the MME, the UE identifier,and the information transmission manner that needs to be used, that theMME supports the information transmission manner that needs to be used;and sending, by the HSS, the route distinguisher of the MME to theMTC-IWF, so that the MTC-IWF routes, according to the routedistinguisher, a data packet that needs to be transmitted.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 4, wherein information about the informationtransmission manner sent by the MME and received by the HSS comprises:information about an information transmission manner supported by boththe MME and the UE.
 6. The method according to claim 4, wherein thedetermining, by the HSS according to the information transmission mannersupported by the MME, the UE identifier, and the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, that the MME supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used comprises:determining, by the HSS according to the UE identifier, the MME servingthe UE; and querying, according to the information transmission mannerthat needs to be used, the information transmission manner supported bythe MME, to determine that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used.
 7. A data routingapparatus, comprising: a receiver, configured to receive a routedistinguisher of a mobile management entity (MME) serving user equipment(UE) sent by the MME, wherein the route distinguisher is in a one-to-onecorrespondence with an information transmission manner supported by theMME, and configured to receive a query message sent by a serviceinteraction functional entity (MTC-IWF), wherein the query messagecarries a UE identifier and an information transmission manner thatneeds to be used; a processor, configured to determine, according to theroute distinguisher of the MME received by the receiver, an informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, wherein the routedistinguisher is in a one-to-one correspondence with the informationtransmission manner supported by the MME, and configured to determine,according to the information transmission manner supported by the MMEand determined by the first determining module, and the UE identifierand the information transmission manner that needs to be used that arereceived by the receiver, that the MME serving the UE supports theinformation transmission manner that needs to be used; and atransmitter, configured to send a route distinguisher of the MME that isreceived by the receiver and that corresponds to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used to the MTC-IWF, so that theMTC-IWF performs routing according to the route distinguisher of theMME.
 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the receiver isconfigured to: receive all route distinguishers of the MME sent by theMME; or receive a route distinguisher of the MME that corresponds to aninformation transmission manner supported by both the MME and the UE. 9.The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the processor is configuredto: determine, according to the UE identifier received by the receiver,the MME serving the UE, and query, according to the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used, the information transmissionmanner supported by the MME and determined by the processor, todetermine that the MME serving the UE supports the informationtransmission manner that needs to be used.